Romney’s Medicare plan raises cost questions

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FISHERSVILLE, VA - OCTOBER 04: Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks during a campaign rally at the Augusta Expoland on October 4, 2012 in Fishersville, Virginia. One day after the first presidential debate, Romney spoke to the Conservative Political Action Conference before heading to Virginia to campaign with running mate U.S. Rep Paul Ryan (R-WI). (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- Aides to Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney say his Medicare plan won’t try to control costs by limiting the payments that future retirees would use to buy private health insurance. That adds detail to a proposal that has both intrigued and confused many Americans.

Reining in costs is vital to keeping Medicare affordable, and in their plans both President Barack Obama and GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan set limits on the growth of future spending.

Independent experts say they doubt Romney’s Medicare plan can succeed without some kind of hard spending limit. But campaign officials say the savings will come through competition among health insurance plans.

An official with the nonpartisan Concord Coalition, executive director Robert Bixby, says it sounds like Romney is trying to have it both ways.